apparently, its not possible for JET's to have too many orientations. i spent monday (月曜日) and tuesday (火曜日) in more all-day orientations in the capital city of my prefecture, tsu (津市).

the view of tsu city (津市) from my hotel window

i must say that these workshops were much more relevant than the ones in tokyo because they actually pertained to my specific prefecture. we learned about how seismologists are actually expecting a major earthquake in mie anytime now. i actually have an emergency bag already packed with emergency supplies next to where i sleep just in case. pretty crazy.

we also learned about all the cool adventures that some fellow JET's are planning, like going to all the big summer festivals, tokyo disney, and even going up to nagano for a weekend of snowboarding.

the post-orientation party at a popular foreigner (外人) bar, the melting pot

the best past of orientation, however, was the after party. we went to this foreigner bar owned by some crazy texan who also poured our drinks for us. the highlight was when i tried my first flaming sambuca shot:

• 1. pour a shot of sambuca
• 2. light it on fire
• 3. put out the fire by covering it up with another glass
• 4. remove the glass
• 5. drink the shot
• 6. huff the fumes still trapped in the outer glass with a straw
• 7. feel unsober

my flaming sambuca was different than everyone else's because of the simple fact that when the bartender lit mine on fire he did not clean the excess alcohol around it first. so before i could drink my shot, i had to wait for him to put out the small bar fire he had just started first. mental note: flaming sambucas are not the smartest or safest drink to order.

on our way back from the post-orientation party